By Jasmine Willis
DANSVILLE ‑ The Dansville BSA Troop 38 Eagle Scouts are celebrating nearly a century of tradition within the community.
The Dansville Boy Scouts was founded in 1915 with Troop 1 and the following year with Troop 2. Troop 38 started in 1924. They didn’t get a scout master until 1925. It has seen over 100 boys complete the tasks to become Eagle Scouts. There have been nearly 30 Scout Masters in that long history. There are over 700 names attached to the Dansville Boy Scouts over this impressive history.
Chad Schuster, Troop 38 Scout Master told this local reporter that the boys are still working hard to keep the troop going strong in this pandemic.
“Some of our scout history was destroyed in fires, floods, and other ways over the years. We started out in 1924 as part of the (Boy Scouts) Steuben Area Council. In the 1990s our council merged with a few others to be part of the (Boy Scouts of America) Five Rivers Council. I have been studying the history of our boy scouts for a long time. I got a lot from the Fulton History, Dansville Public Library and word of mouth,” he said. “Becoming an Eagle Scout is a rank boys need to make before turning 18. There are certain projects they need to complete to become an Eagle Scout. At the moment I have three more boys who are working on being Eagle Scouts.”
Schuster said he is working on his Wood Badge now. This requires any adult scout leader to complete certain tasks. They are given five ticket items to complete their vision. He was given the leadership role during the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020. Schuster has been able to fulfill his duties at the leader in that time despite the hurdles.
“The biggest thing about the Boy Scouts is leadership. We try to teach them things that they will use throughout their lives,” he said.
“It took me a couple of years to complete my task of gathering the history of BSA Troop 38,” Schuster said. “I have been digging deep into the history. I plan on making a scrapbook of all the things I have found of the years. I found photos, news articles, and other archives.”
Schuster added the club has always had a home with St. Mary’s Church. They still meet at the old St. Mary’s School once a month. They have been chartered by the Dansville Fish and Game Club since 2017.
The Holy Family Parish, St. Mary’s Church, and St. Patrick’s Church all had a part to play in the history of BSA Troop 38.
The three BSA Troop 38 currently working on the Eagle Scouts rank are Swayer Barron, Adam Schuster, and Preston Bell. The boys each must complete three major projects tied into making their community a better place.
The following have all been Troop 38 Eagle Scouts; Charles McLane (1927), James McDonald (1928), Cletus Fries (1929), William Roberts (1929), James Cox (1931), Charles Derowitsch (1931), Richard Driscoll (1931), Daniel Albert (1933), William Blum (1933), John “Jack” Mahany (1933), Jack Donoghue (1935), James Albert (1939), Donald Wise (1939), Earl Allyn (1943), David Blum (1953), Shults Pruner (1953), James Rauber (1953), Francis Gilligan (1954), Harold Kruchten (1954), James Martin (1954), Dennis Morgan (1954), Herman Vogt (1954), Anthony Amico (1955), Ted Kuhn (1956), Jon Shay (1956), Donald Cox (1961), Karl Schneider (1961), Thomas Gilligan (1961), John Schwan (1961), Thomas Vogt (1961), John Sauerbier (1966), James Schwenzer (1966), David Burley (1966), Michael W. Smith (1968), Michael Johnson (1969), William Cramer (1970), Stephen Smith (1970), Ronald Domescek (1972), Daniel Hayes (1972), Maichle Gould (1974), James Sauerbier (1974), John Smith (1977), William Waterhouse (1980), Mark Jaeger (1980), Christopher Jaeger (1981), Patrick Jaeger (1981), Mark Pfuntner (1983), Brian Bartalo (1984), Craig Howe (1984), Stephen Jaeger (1984), James Lungu (1985), Tom Acomb (1987), Richard Carberry (1989), Patrick Harris (1989), Daniel Lebar (1989), Jon Martina (1989), Adam Northrup (1989), David Werth (1989), Jason Davern (1990), Brian Norton (1990), Stephen Wamp (1991), Aron King (1993), Donald Sanders (1993), Todd Burritt (1996), Richard Calnan (1996), Todd Goho (1996), Troy Goho (1996), Brian Shutt (1996), Bradley Martina (1997), Brian Martina (1997), Eric Pfuntner (1997), Justin Foster (1999), Jason Holmes (2000), Matthew Gridley (2005), Nicholas Olson (2005), Benjamin Olson (2006), Adam Leven (2007), Ben Knights (2007), Justin Camuto (2008), Samuel Riedel (2008), Nathen Wilson (2009), Benjamin Knights (2010), Jacob Olson (2010), Corey Mehlenbacher (2011), Sage Routier (2012), Nicchia McFadden (2013), Alex Spoor (2013), Travis Cornbau (2014), Nicholas Smalt (2017), Nickolas Swain (2018), Ethan Hart (2019), Jacob Cotton (2019), Marshall Barron (2019), and Nathen Smalt (2019).
If anyone has more information on the history of the BSA Troop 38 Eagle Scouts or other names that are missing from the list, contact Chad Schuster at cschuster2@stny.rr.com For more information on how to join BSA Troop 38 visit http://www.scoutlander.com/publicsite/unithome.aspx?UID=282 To learn more about the Five Rivers Council visit https://fiveriversbsa.org/about-us/welcome-to-five-rivers-council/
Comments